Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Here's my question: all sorts of housing siding lasts with little more than exterior grade paint year after year, and it is exposed to more direct moisture than the bottom of a trailer. Why do you need to seal the bottom of the trailer as if it is some sort of boat? If you live in a place where things really dry poorly due to high humidity or frequent rain, okay, take the extra precaution. But for many arid western areas, I just can't see the need to create a 100% waterproof trailer BOTTOM. It only gets soaked when you drive in the rain. Park - it dries.

Mark in Colorado

Because it rains a lot more in placses apparently than in Colorado. We had 20" of rain in the month of July alone.

Siding on a house will dry because of two reasons, one it's vertical and second it's exposed to air movement. The plywood on the bottom of the trailer isn't exposed to either. Once it's wet it will stay wet for a long period of time, especially if you live in a humid climate. Drive in the rain and then wait for the side of your house to dry in a few hours, then look at the bottom of your trailer where it catches water up against the steel and the plywood and it will stay wet for days. That's why.

Sray the soffits under the eave of your house or the celing of your carport as well and it will take 10x as long to dry as the siding on the outside.

Not everyone lives where the humidity hovers around 15-20% either.

The use of plywood product siding in the south and the east has pretty much been relegated to outbuilding structures because it rots and rarely last 5-10 years at most unless they are totally protected from rain, even less if it's placed within 18" of the ground. You see it all the time, rotted from the bottom 1/3 down. That's why products like hardie board have become so popular - they don't rot.

I used this waterproof flashing on the bottom of my teardrop and so far it's worked good. I just finished a 4100 mile trip up the Alaska Highway with it, which included about 1100 miles of gravel road. It held up fine. It stayed put and resisted rock damage very well.

These shots: Hatcher Pass is a shortcut between Palmer and Willow, Alaska. The next is on the Dempster Highway, returning from the Arctic Circle. The last three pics are on the Denali Highway.

why not use DuliColor Bedarmor with kevlar in the spray can??

http://www.amazon.com/Dupli-Color-BAA20 ... B004SJ16QG

I wonder about using RedGard http://www.custombuildingproducts.com/p ... dgard.aspx as an alternative? What do you guys think?

I am a new teardrop builder and at the gathering of info for my build which will be in May. I was thinking of using tight seal flashing on the outside of my walls then applying the aluminum sheeting. Any ideas would be most appreciative. Thanks. Barbara

I have an idea for sealing up the bottom of the trailer. It is similar to using signboard, but I suppose it isn't a rigid as signboard. I was thinking of using this plastic (almost rubber-like) sheet sold at Home Depot. It is 4 x 8 ft so one sheet would neatly cover the whole footprint of the floor board. My idea is use this under the plywood floor but above the floor beams to have a continuous seal across the underneath part of the floor plywood.


Click on these images for bigger versions.

Then I would use something to seal around the floor beams and the edges. This would help reduce the amount of roof sealant asphalt stuff that I would need to use. Any thoughts on this idea?

My only concern is that it is almost rubber-like, and may sag. in which case rivets would be useful, but then would they be opening up too many potential places for water to seep in....

I spray on bed liner[http://www.rhinolinings.com/] for pickups, frame ,underbody, inside fenders, bottom of galley if using sink. can be touched up with aerosol cans of same product. Dry to the touch, extremely durable, attractive, and will last the life of the trailer. I have also sprayed the outer wood on teardrops before paint when the owner wanted water tight over surface looks.

I applied this Tite Seal to the underside of my floor; seems like a great product. My retied Marine brother used the "USMC Quality Test" on a sample board...he took a hammer and struck at it with solid glancing blow to simulate a large rock bouncing up into it, there was a slight tear, but between the two of us, we don't think any large rocks would really strike the floor that hard. Overall, Marine tested and approved

Now for the questionable piece...we let the tite seal material fold over the floor board only enough to cover the under carriage board so when looking at it, the 1x2 framing and the inside floor boards outside edge is not sealed. The wall will sit on the floor and not cover the side.

I do not know why I did it this was, but now I need some suggestions on what to do about the exposed floor edges.

I'm not sure what I'm looking at there. Perhaps you could describe it from the bottom up.

I think it is an old Encyclopedia Britannica bolted to a Harbor Freight trailer.

Britannica...

It is my floor...from the bottom up.

1 - Lowest layer is "Tite Seal", this was applied to protect the undercarriage from rocks and water.

2 - The silver edge is the "Tite Seal" folded over the outside edge of the undercarriage; this is 1/2" Baltic Birch 4' x 8' Plywood.

3 - Then the framing for the floor is 1" x 2" Furring Strips, this is the piece of with the "pf" stamped on it;there is 3/4" insulation nestled in the framing laying on the undercarriage.

4 - Then there is a 1/4" Baltic Birch 4' x 8' Plywood. This the floor inside the TD, there is a ledge there where my wall (outside skin) will rest on.

5 - The top is another 1" x"2 furring strip screwed to the floor (see the screw going into the 1" x 2" from the top), this is what my walls will be attached to.

My walls will rest on the floor and be attached "screwed into" the 1" x 2" Everything below this 1 " x 2" furring strip is the floor board and will be exposed. As it stands, I have no plans on covering the edges with any type of cosmetic trim (aluminum, wood or ....).

What I was hoping for, are suggestions on "SEALING" the edge of my floor board.

Ah, I see it now. Thanks for the explanation.

Many options for sealing that bottom corner.
1. "The Mix", various ratios of oil based poly and mineral spirits.
2. Straight or water thinned TB2; or a coat of each (water thinned first for penetration).
3. CPES (expensive), either multiple coats or covered with an epoxy coat.
4. Straight epoxy.
5. Epoxy and glass composite.
6. Canvas and glue or paint (foamie style).

From what I gather the CPES is rather dear and many folks feel that there is no need to bother if you are using regular epoxy over the top.

On TPCE I used TB2 thinned 1 part water to 2 parts TB2 on the underside of my floor, followed by a coat of straight TB2 and I have to tell you that it seems to be fully adequate. Before I am done I will probably add a coat of exterior latex paint and never think twice about it.

No black goop? Heresay? Maybe, but the TB2 set up hard as epoxy and has not scratched or flaked while dragging my walls over it and using it as a work surface.

Has anyone tried roll-on Bed liner for truck beds?

This is sort of a cross post but this portion fits, My trailer is not a sleeper and I live in South west.

Decided to save money and give this stuff a try. They have quite a few colors they can mix it with I liked the Black.

There's a special roller to use and it's got a bit of a texture.

This Paint is MESSY! But it cleans up fast. They recommend 2 coats but seeing as though it's not a sleeper and will be stored in my garage I chose to go with one coat I think that I may roll it on the Trailer frame and maybe a lower stripe for cool affect.

My Wife did an AWESOME job.